In Between
by ocealyn
Summary: He is a helpless ghost trapped between two worlds. She is a seemingly average girl gifted with the power of sight. He needs her help to cross-over, but will she give in and finally use her power to help those who need it? As they delve deeper, what happens when things aren't exactly as they seem? (A/N: HEA)
1. Prologue

**PROLOGUE**

I was taught never to panic. Even at the direst of situations, my father always taught me how to keep calm. At this moment, those words were the one thing I could depend on.

I clutched at my chest. It didn't work. Nothing did. I was at a panic. My breathing grew ragged and I felt the sweat dripping from my forehead.

Even as a ghost, I felt the excruciating pain tearing at my head.

No. I stumbled across the room, feeling my head swim. I couldn't believe it. It was him all along. It was so obvious, why didn't we see it?

Fuck this! Why did it all have to come back just now?

It was him.

He was the one who tried to kill me.

I needed to tell Bella…

My head shot up.

Bella.

I gasped. "No…," I stood on my feet, falling a couple of times before making my way out of the house, going through walls to make things quicker. When I made my way outside the house, the rain and the night sky made it impossible to see clearly, but I saw none of the vehicles in front of the house.

I felt my stomach drop. "No, Bella. He couldn't have…,"

I ran back into the house, feeling my pulse quicken by the second. The living room was dark and Royce's father was watching the TV with the usual scotch and cigar, but at the end of the room, I could see it clearly. At the firearm closet,…

One handgun was missing.

My eyes widened. "No…" I blasted away from the house and ran across the forest, following the path of the undergrowth. I didn't have a vivid memory of the area, but I remembered the cliff side where he took me. A little ways down south…

I was truly at a panic.

Bella, please, God, don't be there. Be safe. Please be fucking safe! With everything we've been through, I can't let you sacrifice any more.

A few seconds of running and I suddenly felt myself blasting through the forest with staggering speed, the trees moving past me in the blink of an eye.

It's here! It had to be here somewhere. But with the rain and the darkness, it was getting a little difficult to see and navigate.

A cliffside. It had to be around the edge of the forest, near La Push.

"Don't fucking be there, Bella, please God!" I almost whimpered.

It was a trap!

A moment later, I felt her spiritual energy as I approached the end of the forest and my heart thundered in my chest. "No, fuck! BELLAAA, STOP!" I yelled, hoping that she could hear me!

I ran as fast as my legs could take me. This can't be. This can't be happening…

"BELLA! STOP! GET AWAY FROM HIM!"

She was closer. I could feel her. Her energy was still strong. Please God! Let me make it on time!

"Edward?"

Bella! It was faint,… only a whisper, but I heard her voice. She's here! "IT'S A TRAP, BELLA!" I screamed as a small clearing coming into view.

I heard her gasp as I stepped into the scene before me. It was him! He had a gun in his right hand and had it pointed to my Bella who was right beside the edge of the cliff.

We shared a look of panic. Tears were running down her face.

Click.

"I'm sorry, but you can't live," he shook his head, laughing like the murderer he is, "you know too much already."

"NO!" I ran toward him, ready to possess his body.

"Edward," Bella whimpered.

…But I was too late.

"Goodbye, Bella Swan."

A gunshot resounded the forest and all I could see was black.

* * *

A/N: First chapter comes out tomorrow :) Let me know what you think.


	2. 1: The Boy In Between

**CHAPTER 1: The Boy In Between**

_"Did you hear about it?"_

_"It's tragic."_

_"Still can't believe it happened."_

_"I knew he was a drunk."_

_"Him? No way."_

_"What an idiot."_

_"Can't believe he's really gone…"_

_Gone._

_Gone._

_Gone._

_I folded my arms on the desk, feeling crestfallen as I listened to the voices around me. Only a few minutes until the school bell rings, and everyone was still talking about it. Can't say I blame them though._

_It was strange how your life ended so unexpectedly. You were fine one day, and now you're just… gone. People of Forks were used to the unpredictable. Just look at this horrid weather. It rains one minute, and then shines the next._

_Most of us couldn't accept your death._

_Jessica spilled the beans on me this morning._

_About what happened to you, that is._

_You probably wouldn't be surprised that it was her. She was the Gossip Queen of the school after all. Her words spread like wildfire. Needless to say that I was shocked. I just didn't think you were that kind of a person. I thought you were more of the responsible type._

_Drunk drove, crashed and burned to a crisp._

_Those were her exact words. You'd think she'd have a little sympathy. I knew you dated her a couple of times. I guess that didn't end well, obviously, with her condescending tone. But still… you'd think a human being would have a small ounce of empathy._

_I found your girlfriend in tears in the cafeteria. Almost everyone was consoling her. Never really liked her. I'm sorry._

_You know, I never really understood why you stayed with her. It was obvious that you didn't harbor much feelings the poor girl. I usually found you hiding behind the corner when she passed by the hallway trying to look for you._

_I giggled._

_I caught you a couple of times in the act. We'd share a look, you'd give me your silly grin, then I'd shake my head and laugh._

_We never really spoke much, you and I. We were lab partners for a year, and we were civil. But I guess we just grew in different circles. Ever since kindergarten, you probably assumed that I was the weird and quiet little kid in the corner._

_The wallflower, maybe._

_Well, I wouldn't be surprised if that's what you thought. In other people's eyes, I cried for no reason, gazed into thin air, and talked to things that weren't there._

_If only they knew the truth,… but I'd rather they not._

_My parents thought something was wrong with me. But how could a little kid explain something so ominous? I didn't want to give them the burden of knowing._

_I had reasons for my silence, of course. But I could never tell you that. Not to anyone._

_I was fine with that title. A wallflower. I never wanted to be the center of attention in school._

_You were nice to me though. Which was something I never really understood._

_I kept to myself most of the time._

_However, I did have fun talking to you. Believe it or not, you're one of those people I was able to carry a proper conversation with and not throw up._

_You were nice and sweet._

_And if I were a different person in high school, if I had the chance to change my image and be a part of your circle, I had a feeling we would have been close friends._

_But high school was all about keeping images. Me? I was the average, brown-haired little mouse. Sometimes anti-social, sometimes a little odd, and mostly kept her nose in the damn books._

_You were Mr. Popular. Captain of the soccer team, straight-A student with dashing good looks, bronze hair, green eyes…_

_All the girls fawned… All the boys admired…_

_Your death broke a lot of hearts and shed a lot of tears._

_Not me. I don't cry. Not anymore. My eyes have dried up. But I guess you'll never hear the story behind that._

_Some of the students were talking about going to your funeral later tonight. The teachers would visit, I'm sure. You were one of their star pupils after all._

_I twiddled my fingers on the school table._

_Should I go?_

_You don't know this, but I hate going to funerals. I haven't attended one ever since…_

_Hmm… it still hurts to talk about that._

_It's not because of the glum setting, or the teary relatives, or the sight of a dead body… or in your case… cremated, I think._

_I closed my eyes and rested my head on my arms on the table, sighing heavily._

_You probably crossed-over, right Edward?_

_Because if I see you as a ghost… I don't think I have the heart to bear it._

**EDWARD**

_"…told you this was a bad idea…"_

_"…you know where it is…"_

_"…came to help you…"_

_"…where is it?..."_

_Where…_

_where…_

_where…_

_"Edward…"_

I woke up in a fright, gasping for air, in a nonsensical fright. The first thing I saw was darkness. All around me.

Not a speck of light anywhere.

I grew nervous, my heart beating out of my chest. Why was it so dark?

I rubbed my eyes, trying to wake them up when I realized that I was sitting on damp earth.

What the?

I felt the soil under me with the palm of my hands. They were cold and damp.

Was I… in the forest?

I got up on my feet and scanned the area. It was dark, but I knew I was definitely in the forest.

Doing what? What the hell was I doing here, and what the fuck was going on?

I heard the water running on the river nearby and followed the sound. The rapids were strong. It must've rained last night. But my clothes were dry. Not even a speck of dust on them.

I knew I was supposed to be cold, but I didn't feel the chill in the air.

Strange.

My mind was a blank, but things started to come back to me slowly.

My name. Edward… Edward Anthony Cullen.

Why would I forget my name?

Age. Eighteen.

Home. Forks, Washington.

Home.

"Shit." I turned around and walked opposite the river. My parents. They must be worried. I had to get out of here, quick. I had no idea where I was headed, but it seemed like I walked for hours.

A moment later, I finally found myself walking on black pavement. A road. But no cars were passing by. My instincts told me to head north.

I didn't know how long I was on the road, but eventually dawn broke and light was starting to fill the void.

A familiar sound came behind me, stopping me in my tracks.

The roar of an engine.

I almost laughed. Thank Jesus! They could help me! The lights were getting closer, so I stood at the side of the road and waved my hands up to make sure they wouldn't miss me.

"HEY!" I called, waving frantically. The car didn't slow down and I grew impatient. I waved some more. "Hey! Stop!"

It didn't slow. Could they see me at all?

In an act of desperation, I stood in the middle of the road and raised my hands up. "Stop!" I screamed.

It was close.

"STOP!"

So close.

"STOOOP!"

I yelled, cowering into a ball, expecting the full impact of the truck to hit, but only heard the roar of the loud engine and a strange pulling sensation as I stared at my hands.

I gasped, falling to the ground, feeling my heart beat like I'd run a thousand miles. "Holy. Fucking. Shit!"

It went through me.

The truck went fucking through me!

I panted on the ground, staring at my hands. A strange feeling of dread filled me. I didn't remember much of who I was. I didn't even know how I ended up here.

But I was sure about one thing.

"I…", I stuttered. "I'm a ghost."

* * *

To continue?


	3. 2: Unfinished Business

CHAPTER 2: Unfinished Business

_I don't know why I came._

_I shouldn't have…_

_I walked through your funeral, nothing but tears and hushed voices filling the air. It reminded me of a time… a memory that I rarely thought back to because of the hurt it induced._

_Why do people wear black in funerals?_

_To symbolize mourning and respect for the dead? Why stimulate more glumness to an already glum place? It probably made sense to some people, but not to me._

_I feared the color black just like I feared the darkness._

_I kept my eyes wary, and I prayed on the inside that I wouldn't see you here._

_Please don't be here._

_A soft voice called my name._

_I jumped in my spot and turned towards the soft voice. A mother in tears caught me off guard. "Mrs. Cullen." I didn't even think she'd remember me. I had only seen her once or twice._

_She forced out a smile, failed miserably and dabbed her handkerchief below her eyes. "Oh, hello dear."_

_I couldn't even speak. What do you say in situations like this? My condolences? I'm sorry for your loss? I was pretty sure she was tired of hearing those words. Appropriate words never seemed so inappropriate at this moment._

_"Uuhm…," Good start, I thought to myself sarcastically. "I uh, I didn't… know Edward that well." What are you getting at? "We weren't close but uh,…"_

_Mrs. Cullen looked at me expectantly._

_"We are- well, were- lab partners in Biology." I smiled slightly. She seemed to listen. "I don't really get along that much with other people but Edward, he always made it seem so easy. Honestly, he was one of the few people in school that I could actually carry a proper conversation with." I shrugged._

_Mrs. Cullen smiled, a slight crinkle showing beside her sad eyes._

_I suddenly looked down at my fingers, a little shy. "When I heard… about what happened that is… about how it happened,"_

_Drunk drove, crashed and burned to a crisp…_

_I closed my eyes for a second. "I just wanted to say that… I don't think it's true." I looked Mrs. Cullen straight in the eye. "Edward just doesn't seem like the kind of person who-," I didn't get to finish for Mrs. Cullen suddenly threw her arms around me and sobbed onto my hair. I sucked in a breath, not used to the affection._

_She sucked in a breath and whispered a thank you._

_After a moment, I thought I'd almost shed a tear._

_… … …_

**EDWARD**

Home.

I stared at my house filled with moving creatures in black as I leaned against a tree out in the yard. It had taken me a long time to walk home in my ghostly form. Aren't ghosts even allowed to teleport of fly or something?

I felt like a hologram incapable of anything. Whoop-di-doo.

As I stared at the faces of people moving in and out of my house, small memories started to come back to me, but not as much as I had hoped. Most of the memories were of friends in school.

Alice.

Rose.

Jasper.

Emmett.

… and, this one other person. I couldn't remember who.

Listening to the conversations of the gossip-filled rooms, apparently I died in a car crash… dead drunk.

After hearing about that, I felt a burn of rage within me.

Was this it? Was this how I would leave my mark in the world?

I would be remembered as the arrogant popular boy who drunk drove to his death. What an original tragic high school story.

After hearing about it, I didn't have the heart to see the expression on my parent's faces, so I left the house, but I didn't want to go anywhere else. Being here around this area, made me feel some sort of peace. Unlike that damp forest which just about scared me to death.

Ha!

Scared me to death.

Good one, Edward.

"Hello, Edward." Said a small voice.

Jumping from my spot, I looked up to see a little blonde girl swinging from the tree branch. She smiled down at me and laughed.

Wait.

What?

I glanced around me to see if she was talking to anyone else. "Are you…talking to me?" She gazed down, a small twinkle in her eyes. She couldn't be more than three-years old. She wore a flowing pink dress and bare feet dangled against the tree branch.

"Who else would I be talking to?"

I sucked in a breath, suddenly nervous, scared and excited at the same time. "Are you a ghost too?"

She thought for a second. "Hmm… I guess you could say that."

"But you're dead right?! Like me?"

She scowled at me and I almost cowered from the little girl's stare. "I don't like being called a ghost."

"Then… how do you know my name? Do you know why I'm still here?"

She blinked at me. "We were neighbors, Edward. I'm here right now because my Mommy and Daddy and brother are in your funeral." She pointed to my house. "_You_ are here because you are dead." She pointed to me.

I groaned. "I know I'm dead… but why am I still here? Isn't there supposed to be some kind of tunnel I'm supposed to see? A white one, I presume?"

She shrugged. "Unfinished business, I suppose." It was odd hearing a three-year old speak like an adult. I wondered if she was an old ghost in the form of a child.

"Unfinished business?" I tried to think. "How in the hell am I supposed to know what it is?"

She dropped down… more like glided down the tree and stood smiling in front of me. She was a lot smaller than I thought. Just how old was she when she died? I don't think I remember news about a little girl dying in our street. But then again, my memory was a little fuzzy.

"Do you want to play detective?" She grabbed my hand and pulled me toward my house. I've always wanted to know what it felt like to teleport. I guess my wish was granted because one second I was standing outside the yard, and at the next, I felt a pull at my gut and I was suddenly inside my living room.

Urgh… I felt sick.

People moved around quietly. Black everywhere and white roses lined toward one corner where a silver urn held what was left of me. "Christ." I turned away.

"Do not use the Lord's name in vain." The little girl quirked behind me. I almost forgot she was there.

"Is there really a God—OUCH!" She kicked me in the shin.

"Of course there is!"

I didn't really mean what I said. Guess it was just the stress. "Sorry." I mumbled.

"Hmph." She turned around and started to listen in to people's conversations.

"Isn't it rude to eavesdrop?" She ignored me and continued walking around my house. As we walked on however, I couldn't help but listen in to what people were saying as well.

_"Such a bright young boy. 'Tis a pity."_

_"An only child. I can't even imagine what Esme and Carlisle must be feeling."_

_"I still can't believe he's really gone."_

_"Can you imagine what Tanya must be feeling?"_

The little girl turned to me. "Who's Tanya?"

Tanya…Tanya… I tried to wrack my memory. "Uhm, the name sounds familiar, but…," it wasn't enough to jog my memory. I listened in again.

_"I know. They were such a gorgeous couple. How long had they been together?"_

_"Hmm, I think it was just about two months."_

The little girl made a look of disgust. "Your girlfriend was Tanya?"

"What's with the face? Did you know her or something?"

She put her hands on her waist. "You had A LOT of parties here in your house. Tanya is a blonde brownnoser."

I crossed my arms. "You eavesdropped in my parties?"

"Sometimes spirits like me get bored! Don't blame me. You're about to find out yourself. Wait for it."

Groan. "I don't want to wait for it. All I want to do is find my unfinished business, as you said, and go-,"

"Oh! There's my family!" She pointed behind me.

True enough, as I turned I recognized a middle aged couple with a teenage boy beside them. They stood quietly in front of my urn and had unshed tears in their eyes. Even the little boy was slightly crying. "Th-they're your family?"

"Yup!" She popped the 'p' and proceeded toward them. She hugged the little boy in her arms and he didn't flinch. "This is my little brother, Alec. You used to teach him how to play soccer, and he made the team because of you."

Alec…

A few flashes of old memories came flying back and I recalled showing him a few soccer tricks out on our yard. He'd always smile and call me the big brother he never had. My heart softened as I watched him fight his tears. "Alec." I nodded, walking closer. "Yeah… I remember you." Don't cry, little guy. "Uhm, I don't remember Alec having a little sister."

The little girl smiled at me sadly. "I was his twin sister… but I died a minute after I was born. Alec was able to survive. I've been watching him and my parents ever since."

I stared at back and forth between her and her family. "So… you're like a guardian angel."

She giggled. "Yeah. He gave me a choice to cross over, but… I wanted to watch over my family. So I stayed."

"He?"

She rolled her eyes and pointed upwards. "You know."

Oh… right.

The notion made me angrier, however. "Then why didn't anyone appear before me when I woke up as a ghost? I was alone in a far forest and the only time I figured out what was going on was when a truck ran through me."

She shrugged. "Unfinished business."

"Fuck this unfinished business. How am I supposed to know what it is?"

"Instead of complaining, why don't you start looking?" she poked me in the chest.

CRASH!

We turned toward the commotion and saw a short, pixie-haired girl freaking out as she stared at the broken glass at her feet. Her eyes were bloodshot and she wore a black dress with lace on her sleeves.

I recognized her.

"Alice." I gasped, staring at her as she apologized to my mother and started sweeping the broken glass away. When she was done, she grabbed another two glasses of punch and proceeded down the hallway and up the stairs. Before following her, I gave one last glance on my Mother and felt the sting on my chest get worse, so I left.

The door to a room opened and closed behind her and I recognized it instantly.

My Room.

Leaving the little guardian girl to explore the people downstairs, I ran up the stairs and stood confused in front of my door. I tried grabbing the handle but it just went through.

"Well, what the fuck am I-,"

"Just go through it you dummy!" Little guardian yelled to me from below. I smacked my head in stupidity.

"Right…right."

Taking a deep breath, I stepped through the wooden door of my room and was greeted with three other people around me besides Alice. It didn't take me too long to recognize who they were. I smiled.

"Emmett, Jasper, Rosalie." They're all here. My friends.

I watched as Rosalie rested her head against Emmett's shoulder as Emmett tried to keep the tears at bay. They both sat on my bed while Jasper and Alice sat closely on the chair near my window.

"How is everything downstairs?" Jasper asked Alice quietly.

She shrugged. "Still the same. I broke a glass. So stupid. I can't even look at Mrs. Cullen in the face without crying. She was so close to Edward."

"I know." He put an arm around her shoulder and Alice greatly tucked in his warmth.

Emmett whimpered. "This is all my fucking fault."

Rosalie consoled him. "Emmett. Please, don't say that. It's not-,"

"Well, it is! Okay, Rose?" He stood up from the bed and stared at my friends.

"What?" What was he talking about?

* * *

A/N: I'm in the middle of hell week, so I won't be updating for a short while. haha. unless i get a burst of inspiration.

Review?


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